ws-for-aspirants/20687-curiosity-rover-detects-methane
#NASA #SAM #Earth #TraceGasOrbiter #Spaceflight #Mars
Cyanide compounds found in meteorites
Scientists, including those from NASA, have discovered compounds containing iron, cyanide, and carbon monoxide in carbon-rich meteorites, that may have helped power life on early Earth.
Read More: https://www.ksgindia.com/index.php/study-material/news-for-aspirants/20686-cyanide-compounds-found-in-meteorites
#NASA #OSIRIS #Earth #Cyanide #Scientist #iron
#NASA #SAM #Earth #TraceGasOrbiter #Spaceflight #Mars
Cyanide compounds found in meteorites
Scientists, including those from NASA, have discovered compounds containing iron, cyanide, and carbon monoxide in carbon-rich meteorites, that may have helped power life on early Earth.
Read More: https://www.ksgindia.com/index.php/study-material/news-for-aspirants/20686-cyanide-compounds-found-in-meteorites
#NASA #OSIRIS #Earth #Cyanide #Scientist #iron
Ksgindia
Cyanide compounds found in meteorites - KSG India | Khan Study Group
KSG India - Khan Study Group - India's Best IAS Coaching Center for General Studies and CSAT in Delhi, Jaipur, Bhopal, Indore, Patna and Bengaluru.
Today's Headlines - 05 August 2023
Mineral iron is important in ocean ecosystems
GS Paper - 3 (Environment)
According to new research published in Nature, mineral forms of iron play an important role in regulating the cycling of this bio-essential nutrient in the ocean. The discoveries pave the way for future research into the relationship between the iron and carbon cycles, as well as how changing ocean oxygen levels may interact.
More about the research
The research, led by the University of Liverpool and involving collaborators from the United States, Australia, and France, aims to fill a knowledge gap in ocean science.
The early Earth's ocean was low in oxygen and high in iron, which served as a catalyst in many biological reactions. These include photosynthesis, which oxygenated the earth's system through its proliferation.
Because iron is less soluble in well-oxygenated seawater, precipitation and sinking of iron oxides resulted in a decrease in iron levels.
As a result, iron now plays a critical role in regulating ocean productivity and thus ecosystems throughout the modern ocean.
It is thought that organic molecules called ligands, which bind iron, regulate iron levels above their soluble thresholds.
This viewpoint has underpinned the representation of the marine iron cycle in global models used to investigate how future climate changes will affect levels of biological productivity.
However, oceanographers have been perplexed as to why there appeared to be a much larger loss of iron due to insolubility in the ocean than would be expected based on the measured high levels of ligands.
In general, ocean models built in accordance with the expected pattern have performed poorly in reproducing observations.
#upsc #news #headline #mineral #iron #ocean #ecosystem #enviroment #bioessential #nutrient #carboncycles #oxygenlevels #liverpool #US #Australia #france #photosynthesis #ligands #climatechanges #bindiron #regulateiron #seawater #earth
Mineral iron is important in ocean ecosystems
GS Paper - 3 (Environment)
According to new research published in Nature, mineral forms of iron play an important role in regulating the cycling of this bio-essential nutrient in the ocean. The discoveries pave the way for future research into the relationship between the iron and carbon cycles, as well as how changing ocean oxygen levels may interact.
More about the research
The research, led by the University of Liverpool and involving collaborators from the United States, Australia, and France, aims to fill a knowledge gap in ocean science.
The early Earth's ocean was low in oxygen and high in iron, which served as a catalyst in many biological reactions. These include photosynthesis, which oxygenated the earth's system through its proliferation.
Because iron is less soluble in well-oxygenated seawater, precipitation and sinking of iron oxides resulted in a decrease in iron levels.
As a result, iron now plays a critical role in regulating ocean productivity and thus ecosystems throughout the modern ocean.
It is thought that organic molecules called ligands, which bind iron, regulate iron levels above their soluble thresholds.
This viewpoint has underpinned the representation of the marine iron cycle in global models used to investigate how future climate changes will affect levels of biological productivity.
However, oceanographers have been perplexed as to why there appeared to be a much larger loss of iron due to insolubility in the ocean than would be expected based on the measured high levels of ligands.
In general, ocean models built in accordance with the expected pattern have performed poorly in reproducing observations.
#upsc #news #headline #mineral #iron #ocean #ecosystem #enviroment #bioessential #nutrient #carboncycles #oxygenlevels #liverpool #US #Australia #france #photosynthesis #ligands #climatechanges #bindiron #regulateiron #seawater #earth
Today's Headlines - 25 August 2023
Experiments after Chandrayaan-3’s landing
GS Paper - 3 (Space Technology)
After rolling down a ramp from the Chandrayaan-3 lander, the six-wheel, 26-kg rover, which is capable of slowly moving up to 500 metres, began its job of lunar exploration. The landing happened at lunar dawn, and the six payloads on board the lander and rover was started collecting data soon after to get as much science as possible in the single lunar day or 14 Earth days for which they will remain operable.
Mission experiments
The lander has four experiments on board.
The Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive ionosphere and Atmosphere (RAMBHA) will study the electrons and ions near the surface of the moon and how they change over time.
The Chandra’s Surface Thermo physical Experiment (ChaSTE) will study the thermal properties of the lunar surface near the polar region. Chandrayaan-3 has landed around 70 degree south latitude, the closest that any spacecraft has reached to the lunar South Pole.
The Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) will measure the lunar quakes near the landing site and study the composition of the Moon’s crust and mantle.
The LASER Retroreflector Array (LRA) is a passive experiment sent by NASA that acts as a target for lasers for very accurate measurements for future missions.
There are two scientific experiments on the rover
The LASER Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) will determine the chemical and mineral composition of the lunar surface.
The Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) will determine the composition of elements such as magnesium, aluminium, silicon, potassium, calcium, titanium, and iron in the lunar soil and rocks.
Discovery of water
The southern polar region of the Moon is known to have deep craters that remain in permanent darkness, with a high likelihood of having water-ice.
Perhaps the most important discovery made by instruments on board Chandrayaan-1 was the discovery of water and hydroxyl (OH) molecules in the Moon’s thin atmosphere (exosphere) as well as on the lunar surface.
India’s Moon Impact Probe (MIP) — a payload that was deliberately crashed on the lunar surface near the South Pole — helped study the concentration of water and hydroxyl molecules in the lunar atmosphere.
Another payload called mini-SAR helped detect the subsurface deposits of water-ice in the permanently shadowed regions within the craters near the South Pole.
A third payload developed by NASA called Moon Mineralogy Mapper or M3 also helped detect these molecules on the surface of the Moon.
Chandrayaan-2, which was designed to further study the water on the Moon, helped in separately identifying the water and the hydroxyl molecules, and mapping water features across the Moon for the first time.
#upsc #news #headline #experiments #chandrayaan #landing #spacetechnology #exploration #lunardawn #missionexperiments #board #radio #anatomy #hypersensitive #atmosphere #RAMBHA #electrons #ChaSTE #latitude #southpole #ILSA #landingsite #LRA #NASA #LIBS #magnesium #aluminium #silicon #potassium #calcium #titanium #iron #lunarsoil #OH #MIP #miniSAR
Experiments after Chandrayaan-3’s landing
GS Paper - 3 (Space Technology)
After rolling down a ramp from the Chandrayaan-3 lander, the six-wheel, 26-kg rover, which is capable of slowly moving up to 500 metres, began its job of lunar exploration. The landing happened at lunar dawn, and the six payloads on board the lander and rover was started collecting data soon after to get as much science as possible in the single lunar day or 14 Earth days for which they will remain operable.
Mission experiments
The lander has four experiments on board.
The Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive ionosphere and Atmosphere (RAMBHA) will study the electrons and ions near the surface of the moon and how they change over time.
The Chandra’s Surface Thermo physical Experiment (ChaSTE) will study the thermal properties of the lunar surface near the polar region. Chandrayaan-3 has landed around 70 degree south latitude, the closest that any spacecraft has reached to the lunar South Pole.
The Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) will measure the lunar quakes near the landing site and study the composition of the Moon’s crust and mantle.
The LASER Retroreflector Array (LRA) is a passive experiment sent by NASA that acts as a target for lasers for very accurate measurements for future missions.
There are two scientific experiments on the rover
The LASER Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) will determine the chemical and mineral composition of the lunar surface.
The Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) will determine the composition of elements such as magnesium, aluminium, silicon, potassium, calcium, titanium, and iron in the lunar soil and rocks.
Discovery of water
The southern polar region of the Moon is known to have deep craters that remain in permanent darkness, with a high likelihood of having water-ice.
Perhaps the most important discovery made by instruments on board Chandrayaan-1 was the discovery of water and hydroxyl (OH) molecules in the Moon’s thin atmosphere (exosphere) as well as on the lunar surface.
India’s Moon Impact Probe (MIP) — a payload that was deliberately crashed on the lunar surface near the South Pole — helped study the concentration of water and hydroxyl molecules in the lunar atmosphere.
Another payload called mini-SAR helped detect the subsurface deposits of water-ice in the permanently shadowed regions within the craters near the South Pole.
A third payload developed by NASA called Moon Mineralogy Mapper or M3 also helped detect these molecules on the surface of the Moon.
Chandrayaan-2, which was designed to further study the water on the Moon, helped in separately identifying the water and the hydroxyl molecules, and mapping water features across the Moon for the first time.
#upsc #news #headline #experiments #chandrayaan #landing #spacetechnology #exploration #lunardawn #missionexperiments #board #radio #anatomy #hypersensitive #atmosphere #RAMBHA #electrons #ChaSTE #latitude #southpole #ILSA #landingsite #LRA #NASA #LIBS #magnesium #aluminium #silicon #potassium #calcium #titanium #iron #lunarsoil #OH #MIP #miniSAR
Today's Headlines - 02 September 2023
Chandrayaan-3 confirms Sulphur in lunar surface
GS Paper - 3 (Space Technology)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said the Pragyan rover's Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope confirmed the presence of sulphur in the lunar surface near the south pole, through the first-ever in-situ measurements. Pragyan is a lunar rover that forms part of Chandrayaan-3, the lunar mission developed by ISRO.
More about discovery
The Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument onboard Chandrayaan-3 Rover has made the first-ever in-situ measurements on the elemental composition of the lunar surface near the South Pole.
These in-situ measurements confirm the presence of sulphur (S) in the region unambiguously, something that was not feasible by the instruments onboard the orbiters.
LIBS is a scientific technique that analyses the composition of materials by exposing them to intense laser pulses.
A high-energy laser pulse is focused onto the surface of a material, such as a rock or soil. The laser pulse generates extremely hot and localised plasma.
The collected plasma light is spectrally resolved and detected by detectors such as Charge Coupled Devices. Since each element emits a characteristic set of wavelengths of light when it is in a plasma state, the elemental composition of the material is determined.
Chandrayaan-3 successfully executed a soft landing on the moon on 23 August 2023, making India the fourth nation in the world to achieve a successful lunar landing.
India also marked a milestone by becoming the first country to land near the South Pole, an area believed to harbour significant amounts of water ice.
ISRO on 29 August 2023 said preliminary analyses, graphically represented, have unveiled the presence of aluminium (Al), sulphur (S), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), chromium (Cr), and titanium (Ti) on the lunar surface.
Further measurements have revealed the presence of manganese (Mn), silicon (Si), and oxygen (O). A thorough investigation regarding the presence of hydrogen is underway.
Flashback
The LIBS instrument is developed at the Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems (LEOS) / ISRO, Bengaluru.
LEOS, situated at Peenya Industrial Estate, Bengaluru, is one of the vital units of ISRO.
It deals with the design, development, and production of attitude sensors for all low Earth orbit (LEO), geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) and interplanetary missions.
It develops and delivers optical systems for remote sensing and meteorological payloads.
#upsc #news #headline #chandryaan #sulphur #lunar #surface #spacetechnology #ISRO #pragyan #laser #spectroscope #southpole #situ #measurment #rover #LIBS #elemental #composition #scientific #technique #materials #laserpulse #rock #soil #plasma #wavelengths #light #chargedevices #softlanding #milestone #waterice #aluminium #calcium #iron #chromium #titanium #silicon #oxygen #manganese #hydrogen #LEOS #GEO #peenya
Chandrayaan-3 confirms Sulphur in lunar surface
GS Paper - 3 (Space Technology)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said the Pragyan rover's Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope confirmed the presence of sulphur in the lunar surface near the south pole, through the first-ever in-situ measurements. Pragyan is a lunar rover that forms part of Chandrayaan-3, the lunar mission developed by ISRO.
More about discovery
The Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument onboard Chandrayaan-3 Rover has made the first-ever in-situ measurements on the elemental composition of the lunar surface near the South Pole.
These in-situ measurements confirm the presence of sulphur (S) in the region unambiguously, something that was not feasible by the instruments onboard the orbiters.
LIBS is a scientific technique that analyses the composition of materials by exposing them to intense laser pulses.
A high-energy laser pulse is focused onto the surface of a material, such as a rock or soil. The laser pulse generates extremely hot and localised plasma.
The collected plasma light is spectrally resolved and detected by detectors such as Charge Coupled Devices. Since each element emits a characteristic set of wavelengths of light when it is in a plasma state, the elemental composition of the material is determined.
Chandrayaan-3 successfully executed a soft landing on the moon on 23 August 2023, making India the fourth nation in the world to achieve a successful lunar landing.
India also marked a milestone by becoming the first country to land near the South Pole, an area believed to harbour significant amounts of water ice.
ISRO on 29 August 2023 said preliminary analyses, graphically represented, have unveiled the presence of aluminium (Al), sulphur (S), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), chromium (Cr), and titanium (Ti) on the lunar surface.
Further measurements have revealed the presence of manganese (Mn), silicon (Si), and oxygen (O). A thorough investigation regarding the presence of hydrogen is underway.
Flashback
The LIBS instrument is developed at the Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems (LEOS) / ISRO, Bengaluru.
LEOS, situated at Peenya Industrial Estate, Bengaluru, is one of the vital units of ISRO.
It deals with the design, development, and production of attitude sensors for all low Earth orbit (LEO), geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) and interplanetary missions.
It develops and delivers optical systems for remote sensing and meteorological payloads.
#upsc #news #headline #chandryaan #sulphur #lunar #surface #spacetechnology #ISRO #pragyan #laser #spectroscope #southpole #situ #measurment #rover #LIBS #elemental #composition #scientific #technique #materials #laserpulse #rock #soil #plasma #wavelengths #light #chargedevices #softlanding #milestone #waterice #aluminium #calcium #iron #chromium #titanium #silicon #oxygen #manganese #hydrogen #LEOS #GEO #peenya